Freeing Hearts
by ZizhunWriter
Summary: Non-magical AU where Cora is Queen and Snow White is resisting her. When Archie is 'killed' by Cora, those close to him must deal with his death. Killian, Archie's interrogator, is also effected by this situation. Also includes Killian and Ruby. Named because resistance is freeing people from Cora.
1. Captured

**Summary: Non-magical AU where Cora is Queen and Snow White is resisting her. When Archie is 'killed' by Cora, those close to him must deal with his death. Killian, Archie's interrogator, is also effected by this situation.****  
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**Author's Note: Snow won't be in this much, but she is leading the resistance from behind the scenes. Main focus will be on Regina, Killian, Henry, Emma, Archie, and Ruby. Will also heavily include Gold, Belle, Granny, and Cora. Many other characters will be in this as well. Also, this is not a Captain Swan story. Emma helps Killian become a better man, but it isn't romantic; at least, I don't think it will be. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it.**

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><p>The sun sparkled merrily in the sky, greeting everyone in the bustling city below. Dr. Hopper served as its translator, greeting friends and strangers on his way to the inn for lunch, umbrella tucked under his arm to ward off the non-existing clouds. People responded by joyfully returning his hello, staring at him as if he was daft, and everything in between, as typically happened. The pedestrians who normally traversed this street couldn't help but notice that Dr. Hopper seemed even happier than normal, and they chalked it up to the perfect day. This assessment was only partly true; Archie had a very good reason to be cheerful that day.<p>

He entered the inn, which doubled as a diner, saying hello to everyone before taking a seat at the table next to the window, so he could continue to enjoy the day. He glanced over the menu that he knew by heart, from frequent visits to the joint, humming to himself.

"Well, you seem chipper today," Ruby, the waitress, commented, as she brought him his usual glass of water. "Anything special going on?"

"Well, you could say that," he said, grinning at her, and succeeding in turning her work smile into a genuine one.

"Are you going to tell me what's so exciting, or do I have to guess?"

"I'll tell you, if you come over to my office this afternoon." Ruby's smile slipped somewhat. For some reason, the psychiatrist seemed to believe that she was in desperate need of counsel. He'd invited her to his office at least once a week, usually more, for several months, and she'd refused every time. She didn't need his professional advice, like he seemed to think.

"Well, you know, I'm very busy." Archie was not going to let her reluctance ruin the day.

"I don't want to be your psychiatrist," he informed her, taking a more blunt approach than he'd dared to in the past. She studied him, trying to figure out why … no, wait, he couldn't have a crush on her, could he? "I just want to get to know you a little better. What do you say?"

Well, if he wasn't going to assess her mental health … "Ok, sure, but only for a few minutes. I have a date with Billy tonight." She didn't want him to get the wrong idea, and think she was in to him. He was just one of her favorite patrons, and she wanted to get to know him a little better as well.

Dr. Hopper's grin spread even wider than before, if that was possible. "A few minutes is all I need to tell you why I'm so happy."

"Alright then." Ruby walked off to get his Tuesday lunch, forgetting to ask him if he wanted to mix it up today, which didn't really matter because he never did. As she turned in the order, and went to go take the order of some of the other customers, her mind turned to her 'date' with Billy. At least, she hoped it wasn't a date. Not that she didn't want to date him, but she was almost sure Billy was a member of the resistance, which she'd wanted to join since she was a little girl. However, joining the resistance wasn't easy. They were super secretive, and to get in, you had to become trusted by a member. She was hoping that today was her lucky day, and she could finally start to fight against the Queen.

Archie was lost in thought as well, wondering how the day could get any better. Ruby was finally going to talk to him in private, after months of trying to get her alone. No, there was absolutely no way the day could get any better.

Apparently, however, it could get worse. Several of the Queen's soldiers stormed into the shop, with the furious-looking Evil Princess leading the way. Of course, no one called her evil to her face; it was a nickname said only behind her back.

"Welcome to Granny's," Ruby greeted through gritted teeth.

"Out of my way, girl," Princess Regina snapped, pushing past her and striding right to Dr. Hopper's table. "I trusted you!" the princess yelled, hurt and anger in her voice, which somehow didn't seem to faze Archie.

"I betrayed your trust?" he asked, puzzled. This earned him a slap across his face.

"Don't play dumb, Hopper! I trusted you to counsel my son. You've been treating him for years, and then I find out you work for the bloody resistance!"

The customers of the inn let out a collective gasp. There was no way that the friendly, mild-mannered psychiatrist would ever dare to resist the crown. Ruby was about to speak up, and tell the Evil Princess that, but Archie beat her to the retort.

"How can we be bloody when you don't even have us in your custody for five minutes?" She punched him hard, fist contacting with his lip. He yelped, and reached his hand up to feel the blood already trickling down his chin.

"That's how!" she yelled, and it was only then that most of the inn put together the conflicting pieces of information in their heads. Apparently, Dr. Hopper _was_ a member of the resistance.

"That's a start, at least," he admitted. "But, from what I've heard, Snow White escaped the gallows relatively unscathed, so I'd still say we're less bloody than you think.

Murmurs swept through the entire inn, not even the fear of the Princess stopping them. The royalty had decided to try a private, rather than public, execution when they caught the resistance's most prominent leader, so no one would be able to save her. They had made it impossible, or so they'd said, for anyone to rescue the bandit, but if what Archie was saying was true, then they'd failed, yet again, to murder a member of the resistance.

Regina realized it was too late to salvage the concept that they'd succeeded in killing their enemy, so she chose instead to go with a threat. "Yes, she did, and how nice of her, too. Now the noose is all ready for your neck." Ruby couldn't possibly fathom how Archie kept the cocky grin on his face despite the threat. He was either the best actor in the world, or lacked even a hint of doubt in the resistance's rescue system. "Restrain him, now!" Regina barked, and two of the guards grabbed his arms, handcuffing them behind his back. Archie grimaced as Regina grabbed him by his hair once they were done. "You'll regret ever keeping secrets from me," she snarled, before shoving his head away from her and sweeping out of the inn, followed by her guards and their prisoner.

It only took a second after their departure for the restaurant to erupt in noise, everyone talking over either Snow's escape or Archie's involvement in the resistance. Ruby, however, didn't join in the discussion. She stood, staring at the door, wondering if he'd been about to offer her a position in the resistance later that day, and if by looking for a way into the group, she'd avoided the only way being offered.

…

One of the guards shoved him onto his knees into the throne room, forcing his head down to look at the ground. "Leave us until my mother gets here," Regina ordered, and the guards marched out, leaving him alone with the Evil Princess. "Seriously, Archie, what was that? Do you have a death wish or something?" she demanded.

"I wanted to make it blatantly obvious that you hate the resistance," he admitted, and she scowled at him.

"Well, it worked. Thanks for that," she spat.

"Don't blame yourself for this," he pleaded. He knew she hated hurting others, but she had to if she wanted to keep her cover, and he needed to help her remove some of the guilt she felt for this. "It's not your fault. Actually, I rather enjoy getting punched in the face."

A snort that was the best laugh he was going to get out of her that day escaped her lips. "Alright Archie, now we need to get you out."

"No, they'll realize," he asserted. "We can't afford to lose you. Wait until later to rescue me." She nodded, agreeing with his logic, but hating to see him in chains.

"So, if I can't bring the people I rescue to you for a little while, then who …"

"Actually, I've got the perfect temporary replacement. I've been meaning to tell you he was in for a while now, but I just never got the chance."

"Wait, I already know this person?" He nodded, and started to tell her just who she could deliver the prisoners she rescued to, when the door swung open, and the Queen of Hearts strode in.

Regina punched him, hard, to keep up appearances, and he jerked backward, making her heart twist in guilt. "Now answer me! Where is the secret base?" she yelled.

"Regina, honey, stop. You know we can never get the location out of them before they're rescued," Queen Cora interrupted, luckily before Regina would have had to strike her friend again.

"Well then, mother, what do you suggest?" she asked.

"Quite simple, dear. We can risk some of them escaping, but him? After he so effectively tricked you and Henry, I don't want to risk his rescue, and since our plan with Snow didn't work, there's only one other option." She pulled a knife out of a hidden fold in her dress, and plunged it straight into Archie's heart. His cry of pain was cut short, and he slumped to the floor, obviously dead.

Regina did her best to resist the urge to attack her mother, or start crying. Instead, she did the last thing she wanted to. "I suppose you're right."

"I knew you'd see it my way," Cora grinned. "I'm sorry for his betrayal, but I'm sure we can find Henry another psychiatrist."

_Not one that I'd let my son anywhere near_. "Of course, mother." That was, unfortunately, when Henry decided to walk into the room. He froze, shock forming on his face, as he stared at the dead body of his friend.

"What did you do?" he accused, looking right at Regina, before dashing over to the man's side.

"Henry, he was in the resistance," Cora informed him, and the boy stiffened, even though tears continued to fall from his cheeks onto Archie's suit. Regina didn't even process what her mother said; still in too much shock after what Henry said. He blamed her for this, and wasn't it her fault? That idiotic resistance member, Sidney, had decided to switch onto the side of the crown because of his infatuation with her. Archie would still be alive if it hadn't been for that, and surely she could have found a way to warn him, or rescue him. Instead, she'd failed him, her son, and the entire resistance, and she wasn't even permitted to cry about it.

Finally, Henry gathered his composure. "Couldn't you have convinced him to join your side?" he asked, at least blaming Cora this time. "Why did you have to kill him?"

"Henry, he was just too dangerous," the Queen explained.

"You could have found another way!" he yelled, refusing to accept his grandmother's answer.

"Look, Henry," Cora tried to soothe him.

"I hate you! You're evil, and I hate you! Do you want to know why the people call you the Queen of Hearts? It's because you've stopped so many from beating, but you still don't have one of your own!" He turned away from her and almost ran into his mother. "I hate you, too!" he yelled when she tried to hug him, and he dashed out of the room, away from the entire scene.

"I'm sure he didn't mean that," Regina said, partly to stop her heart from crumbling into tiny pieces, and partly so Cora wouldn't try to punish him.

"I hope he did, dear. Now that he is capable of hate, we just have to direct it toward the right people."

"I don't think that's how it works." Regina knew her mother was cruel, but this concept seemed over the top, even for her. No wonder the people thought she was heartless.

"It worked with you." The Princess froze, not ready for that response. "That's why I killed Daniel and your father, to make you hate me. Then, I redirected that hatred toward the resistance, and you've been fighting them ever since."

Regina fought back the strong urge to hurt her mother. She'd known Cora had killed those closest to her, of course, but she'd never before realized that it had been simply to help her experience hate. "Perhaps you're right, mother," she said, pretending to agree with the Queen for the second time that day. "Hopefully, Henry will turn out exactly like me."

…

Captain Hook walked into the throne room, surprised to find that the Queen was completely alone. Well, lacking her guards, anyway. There was another person in the room, but the pirate seriously doubted the red-headed corpse would help in any way with the meeting.

"Your Majesty," he greeted, bowing slightly. "You said you needed my assistance?"

"Yes, thank you for coming on such short notice, Captain." She got off her throne, and walked over to the body, before motioning for the pirate to follow her. "I need you to torture him for information."

"I highly doubt he'll tell me much of anything."

"He's not dead, he just looks like he is. The resistance can't rescue someone they don't know is alive."

"Ah, very clever, Your Majesty. And, may I ask, what do I get out of this arrangement?" Hook, as a rule, never did anything unless he could clearly benefit from it, and while he was itching to interrogate someone again, he wanted to get as much out of this as he could.

"Everything currently belonging to a member of the resistance." He raised his eyebrow. That should be enough to set him and his crew for life, especially considering that many of the members were noblemen who'd successfully tied up their money before running of to fight the Queen.

"Done," he agreed, before bending down and picking up his latest prisoner. "Oh, wait, are you going to want him back?"

A malicious grin spread across Cora's face. "No, Captain. You have permission to do whatever it takes to get the information out of him." Hook found himself smiling as well. This was going to be fun!


	2. Changes

**Author's Note: First, in response to a review from Guest, yes, David is with Snow, but neither of them will be in the story much at the beginning. They are busy leading the resistance, and don't really fall into my main story plot. Second, I am going to do a previously section in this story, to help us remember what happened in each chapter. I've found this to be useful before, but if you guys don't like it, just let me know. And last, I have written a few other stories on here. If you guys like my writing style, you should check them out. Anyway, thanks for reading.**

**Previously on Freeing Hearts**

**"You'll regret ever keeping secrets from me," she snarled, before shoving his head away from her and sweeping out of the inn, followed by her guards and their prisoner. It only took a second after their departure for the restaurant to erupt in noise, everyone talking over either Snow's escape or Archie's involvement in the resistance. Ruby, however, didn't join in the discussion. She stood, staring at the door, wondering if he'd been about to offer her a position in the resistance later that day, and if by looking for a way into the group, she'd avoided the only way being offered.**

**"So, if I can't bring the people I rescue to you for a little while, then who …" "Actually, I've got the perfect temporary replacement. I've been meaning to tell you he was in for a while now, but I just never got the chance."**

**She pulled a knife out of a hidden fold in her dress, and plunged it straight into Archie's heart. His cry of pain was cut short, and he slumped to the floor, obviously dead.**

**The boy stiffened, even though tears continued to fall from his cheeks onto Archie's suit. Regina didn't even process what her mother said; still in too much shock after what Henry said. He blamed her for this, and wasn't it her fault? That idiotic resistance member, Sidney, had decided to switch onto the side of the crown because of his infatuation with her. Archie would still be alive if it hadn't been for that, and surely she could have found a way to warn him, or rescue him.**

**"He's not dead, he just looks like he is. The resistance can't rescue someone they don't know is alive."**

**"You have permission to do whatever it takes to get the information out of him." Hook found himself smiling as well. This was going to be fun!**

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><p>Regina sighed, staring at the papers littering her desk. There were three full pages, as well as half of a fourth, of males she knew. How was she supposed to figure out which one was in the resistance? She'd thought she could narrow it down by only considering the people Archie knew she had met, but then, since he was in the resistance with this person, Regina might not know that Archie had heard about their meeting. So, the only person she could cross off for sure was Henry. While she knew her son wanted to be in the resistance, she also knew that the group never recruited children.<p>

If only she knew someone else in the resistance! However, Archie had been her only contact, and he'd never told anyone that she was the person who rescued the innocent, and he was just the go between. While the prisoners should be able to notice the height and build differences between their original masked rescuer and the psychiatrist, they were usually too wound up to. From what Hopper had told her, no one knew that he wasn't the one who snuck into the prisons and broke people out. This would make it so much harder to convince the resistance she'd already been working with them for the past several years.

The names on the list drew her attention back to them, seeming to taunt her. Finally, she got so frustrated that she threw them into the flames of her fireplace. It was probably a good idea to destroy them anyway, she didn't want to have to try to explain the list to her mother.

Just as she was about to sit back down, and try to think of this from another angle, there was a knock on the door. "Come in," she ordered, and the door opened to reveal the only person who truly understood the trials she went through daily. "Gold!" she exclaimed, and he shut the door behind him.

"I come bringing the latest batch," he informed her. Gold lived in a mansion far from the castle, but right next to the country's only other prison. He rescued them, much like Regina saved the prisoners from her town, and brought them to her. She would then bring them to Archie, who would bring them the rest of the way to the secret base. Somehow, his prisoners never noticed that she and Archie had drastically different builds, either. However, they did know that their original rescuer was the Dark One, but they had yet to equate the crazy imp with the stoic and resistance-hating Mr. Gold.

"I'm afraid I can't be much help," she admitted. "The bridge between us and the resistance …" she trailed off. She couldn't bring herself to say that Archie was gone, and it was all her fault.

"Ah, well then, we need a new bridge," Gold said, instantly understanding that her silence meant her contact was dead, not imprisoned.

"He told me I know someone in the resistance, but I can't figure out who."

"Did he say anything else about this person?"

Regina shook her head. "No, he didn't have time." Gold thought, trying to figure out if her informant could have possibly given her more than she realized he had.

"Did he say anything else about the situation?"

Regina dug past the sorrow into the memories of his last words. "He said he'd been meaning to tell me about it for a while."

"Well then, it seems to me like this person must be someone you know pretty well, not just someone you say hello to every other week."

"You're probably right. At least we can start there." Using a new piece of parchment, she wrote out a short list of names; people who she knew well. Or at least, she tried to. "I can't think of anyone!"

"What about your boy?" Gold brought up.

"No, it can't be Henry. He's too young. They wouldn't recruit him yet."

"Not even when he's the Prince?" Regina wondered if her business partner had a point. "No, my contact would have told me."

"He would have meant to tell you," Gold put in.

"Fine, I'll keep an eye on him, but continue to think of who else it could be. In the meantime, the people you rescued will just have to stay in the secret room and be patient. Unless, one of them is already in the resistance?"

"Sorry to disappoint, but no."

"Oh well, it's only a matter of time until I either figure out who I need to talk to, or a resistance member gets caught, and then rescued by us."

"I better leave before someone finds me with you," Gold reminded her, stepping toward the door. "Oh, and Regina? I'm sorry about the contact." With that, he left, leaving Regina with less questions, at least, but more sadness.

…

Archie awoke, groaning at the pain from the wound in his chest, which, he had to admit, was tiny compared to the death wound it should have been. She'd used a collapsible knife, he realized, but it had still cut into him, most likely to inject him with a poison to make it look like he'd died. Well, whatever she'd used, it had been fast-acting, because the last thing he remembered was seeing her plunge the knife into him.

Besides the pain in his chest, his face hurt from the places Regina had hit him, which he expected, but his wrists also hurt, from being tied together by what he inferred to be rope. He couldn't really tell, it was pitch black in this dungeon, but the texture felt like rope. His neck also hurt, from sleeping at an awkward angle, but that was it, and he supposed he should count himself lucky for not sustaining any worse injuries. Those were probably about to come.

He leaned his head back against the wall, only to jerk it away again in surprise. Was that wood? He'd assumed he was in a stone prison, but apparently, he was incorrect. Now that he thought about it, he could detect a gentle swaying of the floorboards, which were also wooden. He was aboard a ship, which could only mean one thing.

Dr. Hopper wrestled his fear down as he realized he must be aboard Captain Hook's ship; the fiercest pirate he'd ever heard of. The Captain was known to work with Cora when she gave him a good enough deal, and it was apparent she'd managed to convince him to get information about the resistance out of him. The best interrogator of the entire realm would be the one squeezing him for information. Perhaps he should have held off on his judgment from earlier about it being a perfect day, because he was now coming to the conclusion that this was the worst thing that would ever happen to him.

…

Ruby walked home from the diner, after telling Billy she didn't feel like a date that night. They'd rescheduled, and he'd gone to join a sort of secret party to celebrate Snow White's safety and freedom. Ruby didn't feel like celebrating a stranger's freedom when her friend was in chains. Of course, knowing the resistance, the likelihood of his escape was high, but that didn't make her feel much better about his captivity.

She reached her house, and went straight to her room, putting her head in her hands. There was nothing she could do to save the man she'd come to think of as a friend, and it was killing her. She'd always wanted to help others, but she'd never been able to join the resistance and actually make a difference.

But maybe, she didn't have to. Maybe, she could help fight the Queen without the resistance, without backup. She could start a new resistance, one that would, hopefully, merge with the current one. Why should she wait to do what was right, when she could do it now?

She leapt off her bed and exitted the house, walking back toward the celebration. She could recruit Billy into this new group, and maybe some of the other young people there as well. No longer would they stand by and watch the wonderful acts of the resistance, wishing to be a part of them. Now, they would help the civilians suffering under the Queen's rule themselves. No more longing to be heroes; it was time to actually become them.

…

Henry easily slipped past the guards, squeezing through a hole in the castle walls that no one knew existed, save for him of course. Soon, he was walking down the streets as if he was an average boy, wearing the same clothing as a peasant of the kingdom. Today, the only thing that differentiated him from the rest of the crowd were the tears streaming down his face. No one paid the young boy any attention, assuming he was sad because his friends had insulted him, or some other tiny thing that would pass in time. None of them thought that his friend, his father figure, had died.

The young prince tried his best to ignore the cheerful demeanor of the rest of the city. News of Snow's escape had spread like wildfire, and although they'd never admit to the Queen that was the cause of their joy, it was quite apparent it was the only reason for them to be celebrating. They were overjoyed at the safety of one person, and were totally overlooking the death of another. Life was certainly unfair.

"Kid," someone called, and he turned around, seeing Emma walk toward him. He ran to her, and hugged her, sobbing into his shoulder. "Hey, don't worry, we'll rescue Dr. Hopper." Oh, apparently, not even the resistance knew yet.

"He's dead," Henry choked out, before burying his face deeper into Emma's shoulder. The woman froze for a second, before hugging him tighter.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, the only thing she could think to say. Hopper was the one who had originally recruited the boy, but being too busy to train him himself, he'd told Emma about the young Prince's desire to help them. Her first couple of interactions with Henry had been in the presence of the psychiatrist, and she knew how much the boy looked up to him.

"My grandmother stabbed him with a knife," Henry admitted, feeling obligated to tell Emma everything. "My mom just stood there and watched." Then, he was crying too hard to speak anymore. Emma, having no idea what to say, just hugged him tighter, but that seemed to help, as eventually he calmed down a little. "Just tell me what you need me to do; whatever you need me to do, to help the resistance. I won't let you down." There was a fierce determination in his eyes; he wanted to do his best to avenge Archie's death.

"Alright kid, now's when your real training begins." It had been hard to teach him everything he needed to know, because he was living at the castle, and couldn't be gone for too long. Now, however, with the determination he had, he would be able to learn everything he needed to. Soon, he'd be a full-fledged member of the resistance, and they'd be closer than ever to taking down the corrupt government.


	3. Bravery

**Previously on Freeing Hearts**

**Archie awoke, groaning at the pain from the wound in his chest, which, he had to admit, was tiny compared to the death wound it should have been. She'd used a collapsible knife, he realized.**

**Maybe, she could help fight the Queen without the resistance, without backup. Ruby could start a new resistance, one that would, hopefully, merge with the current one. Why should she wait to do what was right, when she could do it now?**

**There was a fierce determination in his eyes; Henry wanted to do his best to avenge Archie's death.**

**"No, it can't be Henry. He's too young. They wouldn't recruit him yet." "Not even when he's the Prince?" Regina wondered if her business partner had a point.**

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><p>Light suddenly leapt into the room, blinding Archie. He squinted, only then realizing that he no longer had his glasses, meaning that even once his eyes adjusted, he wouldn't be able to see that much.<p>

"Hello, Dr. Hopper. Lovely day, isn't it?" his captor asked cheerfully as he sauntered into the room. Archie elected not to respond to that question, but luckily, it seemed like an answer hadn't been expected. "So, seeing as I am the host, it would be rude of me not to introduce myself; so I'm not going to. See, I'm not really a good host, and I like my guests to feel inferior to me, and if you don't even know my name, well ..."

"Your name is Captain Hook, and you're the fiercest pirate to ever sail the seas." Archie winced inwardly at his own bravery, but he'd wanted to say something cheeky to see how the captain would react. He needed to evaluate this captain, so he could figure out how to survive for longer, and perhaps give his brain something else to do besides convince him to turn over the information in exchange for freedom.

"So, you've already heard of me. If anything, that's a disadvantage. You must know that I've never failed to gather information from my prisoners, and that my methods can be quite painful. So, are you ready to spill all your secrets?"

He was obviously confident in his own abilities, perhaps overconfident, but Archie couldn't judge that from a few spoken sentences. He really couldn't gather as much information as he would like, being unable to read the pirate's facial expressions. "I'm not going to give in that easy."

"Well good, I enjoy a bit of a challenge." At least he didn't seem to become angry easily. "Let's play a little game. I ask you a simple question, and you answer. If you don't, or you answer incorrectly, you'll be penalized." Archie wasn't looking forward to discovering what he meant by penalized. "Do you understand the rules?"

"Yes."

"Good, then let's begin. Since this is your first time playing, we'll start with an easy one. What's your name, mate?" The pirate already knew his name; he'd said it earlier, so Archie had no reason not to tell him.

"My name's Dr. Archibald Hopper."

"That's a good start, mate, but now that I think about it, I don't really like your name. From now on, you'll respond to Cricket, because that's all you are, an annoying insect, which is only really useful when it chirps." Ah, so the Captain was trying to make him feel unhuman by taking away his name. That was one of the oldest tricks in the book, and anyway, the joke was on Hook, because Archie had always loved crickets. They represented the freedom he wanted for the citizens. Of course, the pirate was right about the chirping, but not for the reason he thought. As a psychiatrist, Archie's only real weapon was his words, but hopefully, that was all he needed for this situation. "So, what's your name?"

"Cricket."

"Looks like you're a fast learner, good. Now, on to my next question, have you ever been to the secret resistance base?"

"No." He'd hesitated a bit too long for that answer to be accepted.

"So then, you weren't a new recruit; you could actually help us take down the entire resistance," Hook said, acting like his prisoner had said yes, because he had in everything but the actual word. "However, you lied, and that's breaking the rules of the game."

Suddenly, the sharp point of the hook the pirate was named for was pressed against his neck; not enough to cause bleeding, but enough to make Archie very nervous. "Of course, I can't kill you yet, so," he moved his hook, sliding it down his neck to his chest. While he didn't cause any actual pain, he did send a shiver down the prisoner's spine. Once he got to the chest, he pressed harder, ripping the man's clothes and causing a shallow cut, enough to make the blood slightly stain his shirt. "Care to try again?"

Unfortunately for Archie, this man seemed extremely patient. While blowing up in anger would have been terrible, this man's patience would lead to hours of unrelenting torture, and even worse, he wouldn't ever get bored of this. No matter how long Archie could hold out, the pirate could hold out longer. Unless …

"I've only ever been once, and I'm not sure I can tell you exactly how to get there," he lied, making it as convincing as possible. He was always able to act cheerful, no matter his personal circumstances, when he treated his patients, so he should be able to act convincing here too, even if he was channeling much different emotions.

"Well, why don't you try mate?"

"I don't want to lead you astray." The hook was resting gently on his chest again. "But I do know someone who knows the way there backwards and forwards!" he babbled purposely, hoping the man would buy it.

Sure enough, the hook was removed from his chest. "Oh, really?"

"Yes, her name's Emma Swan," he said, silently asking her to forgive him for this. "She was my mentor, but she'd only taken me there once. She goes all the time."

"Then, I guess it's time for this Emma to disappear." That was not what he'd been going for at all.

"Wait!" he yelled, desperate to spare Emma from his fate. "Why don't you try to gain her trust, I can help with that. Then, she'll show you to the base, practically walk you through the front door, and you'll be able to come up with a better siege plan."

The pirate stopped, taking in what he's said. "Very well, Cricket, that's a smart plan. However, you did break the rules of the game."

Archie felt his blood run cold. "I …"

"I didn't ask for your advice on the situation, mate," he said, a malicious sort of glee evident in his voice. "And while I appreciate the plan, that's my job, not yours. From now on, you should stick to information, not suggestions."

Hook strode back over to his prisoner, and Archie had a feeling this was going to be a very unpleasant, but at least he'd gotten what he wanted out of the pirate. Captain Hook would grow closer and closer to Emma, trusting everything Archie told him about her, and then Archie would feed him the wrong information. He'd make sure the pirate was captured by the resistance, and foil this evil plan. He could suffer through getting tortured, especially with the knowledge he was the one with the upper hand. Sort of.

….

Ruby maneuvered through the groups of young people, all of whom were celebrating Snow White's freedom. Finally, she spotted Billy, and she made her way over to the boy. "Hey, Billy, I just got this incredible idea, and I wanted to discuss it with you." He nodded, told his other friends he'd be back in a second, and followed her to a quieter area.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Well, I'm tired of standing by and letting the Queen of Hearts do whatever she wants."

"Aren't we all? I wish we could join the resistance," her boyfriend said.

"Exactly! But, it's so hard to get into the resistance. So, I thought, why don't we start our own? It won't be anything fancy, we'll just help others less fortunate than us survive through the high taxation and other things. Then, maybe, once the resistance sees what we're doing, they'll let us join. Or, if not, at least we'll be doing something to help fight against the Queen."

"But Ruby, isn't that a bit …" Billy paused, trying to find a word that wouldn't offend Ruby. "Dangerous?"

"Well, yeah, but you just said you wanted to join the resistance. I know this isn't the same thing, but I don't see why we can't make a difference now. Yeah, it'll be dangerous, but joining the real resistance would be dangerous too. There is no way to stand up to the Queen without taking a risk," Ruby pointed out.

"Ruby, I don't think this is a good idea. Why don't you grab a drink instead, and celebrate?"

"Seriously? You want to celebrate the deeds of someone you aren't brave enough to emulate?! You say you want to be part of the resistance, but you care more about your own safety than helping others! That's it, I'm going." Ruby stormed out.

"Where?" Billy questioned.

"To start planning a resistance, because with or without your help, I am going to start doing something, instead of wishing I could!" With that, she was gone, leaving the hypocrites to their stupid party.

…

Henry snuck back into the castle, after having trained with Emma. Everything felt sore, every muscle was aching, including his heart.

Luckily, he managed to slip past the guards without being caught, and entered his room. He'd gotten really good about moving unseen, like Emma had taught him, and he practiced the skill almost daily. No one had even noticed that he seemed to disappear for a few hours.

Well, no one had seemed to notice before now. "Where were you, young man?" Of course, his mother would be waiting for him in his room.

"Can't you just leave me alone?" When she didn't move, Henry decided to express his feelings. "You just stood there and let Grandma kill Archie!"

"He was in the resistance," Regina said, watching closely for his reaction.

"Still though, why was killing him necessary?" the little boy protested. "You could have just locked him up, or …" and then, her son broke down sobbing. She wanted to hug him, to tell him everything would be alright, but right now he hated her. Right now was not the time to comfort him. "I thought of him as a dad," he whispered, so softly that Regina barely caught it.

Henry's statement surprised her, although she didn't know why it should. Archie was practically the only male figure in Henry's life; it would make sense for the boy to look up to him. "Henry, I'm so sorry," she said truthfully. Henry looked up at her, and she felt her heart shatter even more at the tears streaming down his cheeks.

"You didn't want to kill him," he said, realizing her apology was sincere.

"No; your grandmother killed him before I could talk her out of it. Henry, I'm so sorry. I wanted to spare his life, I really did." Then, she reached over and hugged him, and he buried himself in her shoulder. She hugged him and hummed, just like she had when he was little and had a nightmare. Once he'd calmed, she remembered her reason for being here.

"Henry, you still need to tell me where you were," she prodded gently.

"Grieving for Archie." While that may not be a specific answer, it was one the Princess would accept. She didn't want to put Henry through any more pain.

"Alright, son." Regina got up, preparing to leave.

"Mom?"

"Yes?"

"Could I sleep with you tonight?" Just like when he'd had a nightmare when he was little. Seeing the sadness covering his face, how could she refuse?

"Sure, Henry." He smiled with relief, glad he didn't have to be alone, and followed her to her room. "Mom, I'm sorry I said I hated you. I don't."

She smiled down at her sweet little boy. "I know, honey. I forgive you." She may not have discovered whether or not her son was in the resistance, but at least she knew that he loved her. For now, that was more than enough.


	4. Developments

**Previously on Freeing Hearts**

**"Wait!" he yelled, desperate to spare Emma from his fate. "Why don't you try to gain her trust, I can help with that. Then, she'll show you to the base, practically walk you through the front door, and you'll be able to come up with a better siege plan." The pirate stopped, taking in what he's said. "Very well, Cricket, that's a smart plan."**

**Hook strode back over to his prisoner, and Archie had a feeling this was going to be a very unpleasant, but at least he'd gotten what he wanted out of the pirate. Captain Hook would grow closer and closer to Emma, trusting everything Archie told him about her, and then Archie would feed him the wrong information. He'd make sure the pirate was captured by the resistance, and foil this evil plan. He could suffer through getting tortured, especially with the knowledge he was the one with the upper hand. Sort of.**

**"To start planning a resistance, because with or without your help, I am going to start doing something, instead of wishing I could!" With that, Ruby was gone, leaving the hypocrites to their stupid party.**

* * *

><p>The harsh light woke him up from his fitful sleep. He hadn't really slept well; the pain from torture keeping him up, as well as the frigid cold of his prison. The pirate walked over toward him, and said, "So, how'd you sleep, cricket?"<p>

Archie didn't answer, mostly because he couldn't. Last night, the pirate had decided to gag him to stop him from "chirping" too much. Or, at least, Archie assumed it was last night. He had no idea what time it was, or how long he'd been down here, and he doubted he ever would.

Hook smirked, before untying the gag and pulling it out of his mouth. "Now, I need you to tell me the best way to become friends with this Emma you were talking about."

"You," he started, but the sound of his own voice stopped him. It was raspy and gruff, from lack of water, and, as he supposed he should admit to himself, all the screaming he'd done earlier. Before Hook got too impatient, he continued. "You just have to be nice to the peasants, and drop a few hints about not liking the Queen's policy."

"Alright then, and where will I find her?" Oh, yeah, where to find her. Emma tended to be all over the place, constantly moving. You could never go somewhere and expect her to be there, unless she'd told you she would be. "You're going to answer me, cricket, or do I have to give you a reason to?" The pirate's hook ventured dangerously close to his already blood-soaked shirt.

"No, I was just thinking! She goes to a lot of different places, and I'm not sure where exactly you'd find her!" he babbled, slightly ashamed of himself for reacting so desperately out of fear, although he tried to convince himself he was just acting. It wasn't working very well.

"Why don't you name one, and I'll start with that," he said, sounding slightly irritated.

"She does like to hang out in the bar by the docks; the Rabbit Hole, I think it's called."

"Good job, cricket. I think you deserve a reward. Just for now, but I might let you keep it if you're telling the truth." He walked out of the room, returning a few seconds later with a blanket, which he tossed at Archie. It landed on his chest, and he winced at the pressure it exerted on some of his wounds. Then, the pirate left, and Archie unfolded the blanket as best he could, and huddled under it.

Once he felt warmer, or, more accurately, less cold, he started his morning ritual, one that he suggested all of his patients do, and one that he needed now more than ever. "Things I'm grateful for," he muttered to himself. He usually did this in his head, but he figured that he should keep using his voice, so disuse wouldn't become another reason for its gruffness. "Well, I'm alive." Archie always started with that one, and usually, twenty or thirty other statements would flow easily after that. Now, however, he seemed to have hit a wall.

"Um, the resistance is safe. Regina hasn't been discovered." He started to wonder if he should be saying these things allowed, but he was whispering and the only one in here. No one would be able to eavesdrop, and even if they were, he'd already given them the most useful bit of information he probably would in this list. "I've got a blanket." He usually stopped at around fifty things, but without being able to list the sunshine and the smell of freshly baked bread from a local bakery, and all the other small joys in life, it was difficult just to come up with five. However, he was determined to come up with at least one more. The one time he'd been on a ship before, he'd enjoyed the rocking motion, but right now it just made him feel even more weak and unstable. "I can't see how badly off I really am." At least he didn't have to look at the injuries that were causing him so much pain, right? That one was a bit of a stretch, but he decided to count it.

Now, he planned out the rest of his day, or however long he had until the pirate returned. First, he would do his best to psychoanalyze Captain Hook, using strictly facts. Then, he'd let himself do what he always strived to stop; he'd move on to speculation. It would pass the time, and then he could see if any of his poorly-founded theories would have any truth to them. Once he got tired of that, he would try to imagine what the rest of the resistance was doing, in great detail. Hopefully, all of this would keep his mind off the idea that if Hook found out his plan, he'd discover a whole new level of pain.

…

Ruby trudged to work, massaging her head as she walked. Who would have thought that creating a secret resistance from scratch would be so difficult? She was currently trying to think of the perfect location for her secret base, which happened to be step one of her plan. Unfortunately, seeing as the total possible locations came to a grand total of zero, Ruby was starting to wonder if her resistance would ever get anywhere.

She was passing by a house when she stopped dead in the middle of the street, and turned to stare. It was Archie's house, and its windows were boarded up. "Excuse me," she said to a guard who'd just finished nailing the last board in place and was about to leave. "Why are you boarding it up?"

"Queen's orders. She doesn't want anyone in the house, in case there's important information in there. She handpicked me to board up the house, so no one could get in," he bragged.

"Oh, I can see why. You seem so capable," Ruby flirted, wanting more information. "But why doesn't she search the house for information?"

"Doesn't have the time. Once she does, in a few months, I'll come back and help her search," he informed her, puffing out his chest.

"You know, I pass by here every morning at around this time, on my way to work. You should tell me when you are going to help her search, maybe then I could watch you work," Ruby said, twirling her hair with fake innocence.

"You'll be the first to know," he choked out.

"Hey, Roger, you coming?" another guard asked.

"Yeah, be there in a second!" the guard Ruby was talking to responded. "So, uh, see you around?"

"I hope so," she responded, and then he ran off to go join his buddy. Ruby turned her attention back to the house. It was a location that wasn't going to be used for months, and she'd be warned before anyone entered. It was a perfect temporary location, and a fitting one.

"Looks like even your house is a part of the resistance, Archie," Ruby whispered, before dashing off to work. After her shift at the diner, she'd come back and see if she could enter the house. But, at least she had an inkling of what she needed to do now.

…

Henry walked down to breakfast, sitting next to his mom and trying to ignore his grandmother. He hated this, dining with his friend's murderer, but he didn't have a choice. At least no one expected him to be civil today.

"Regina, honey, I came up with a brilliant plan yesterday," Cora said, breaking the silence.

"Was this before or after you killed one of my only friends?" Henry questioned pointedly. He wanted her to know that he was nowhere near forgiving her.

"After. I usually do my best thinking after defeating a rebel. Anyway …"

"You mean slaughtering," Henry corrected. "It's not defeating if guards hold him still while you run him through. It's cold-hearted murder then. Or, well, no hearted murder."

"Call it whatever you like, dear." Regina relaxed, only then realizing she had been tense. Her son needed to be more careful; just because Cora was in a forgiving mood now didn't mean that she would be most of the time, and insulting her was a great way for Henry to get himself executed. "As I was saying, I think we need to try a more hands-on approach to catching the rebels. I've invited all of our noblemen to the castle, and together, we are going to crack down hard on the resistance."

"Alright, mother. That's a brilliant plan." Well, this was the first time Cora had thought to enlist the nobles' help with a plan. Usually, everyone just did what they thought was best to capture the resistance, but if everyone got together and talked about the techniques that actually worked, then the nobles might have a better chance at stopping the problems.

"Yes, we'll start meeting every day once everyone gets here, and we are going to solve the biggest problem first," Cora said, happy her daughter approved of the plan. She loved it when Regina was involved with the plan.

"And what is our biggest problem?" Regina wondered aloud, before taking a bite of toast.

"Why, how easily the prisoners are rescued, of course." It took all of Regina's inner strength to keep from spitting out her toast all over the table, none-the-less keep a straight face. "After being forced to kill the psychiatrist, I realized that if our prisons were more secure, I could have kept him alive. I want to try to reduce bloodshed, and this seems like the best way. I don't want to be forced into killing someone else who's important to Henry."

Henry scowled. "Locking people up and torturing them until they spill all of their secrets isn't much better than killing them!"

"But it is better," Cora said.

"I'm starting to think people are wrong about you! Not only are you missing a heart, but there's poison where it should be!" Henry yelled, storming out on his grandmother for the second time in as many days.

"Well, I think that's going great, don't you dear? Henry hates me even more now, and soon, I'll turn all that hatred toward the resistance."

"Whatever you say, mother," Regina said, before getting up. "I have a busy day ahead of me." She followed her son out of the room; she couldn't stand the presence of the Queen any longer. Had she been in there for even one more minute, she would have run the risk of punching the Queen in the face. Regina looked around for Henry, but he'd left too quickly. She wasn't going to be able to figure out where he went. Oh, well. If he was in the resistance, as Gold suggested, then she'd find out eventually. She just needed to be patient. Oh, and warn Gold that rescuing prisoners was about to get a whole lot harder.

…

Hook was frustrated, but only a little. The lass had yet to show her face at the bar, which meant that his prisoner had lied, and he would get to torture the man some more. This did waste some time, but at the benefit of getting to cause some more pain, he couldn't see it as an entirely bad thing. He was about to leave, when he heard the bar tender say, "Emma, what can I get for you? The usual?"

He whirled around, realizing the woman who had walked past him a few seconds ago was, in fact, Emma. Maybe he should have thought to ask the cricket what she looked like. Of course, he'd thought of that earlier, but the chance to punish the man again had stopped him from doing so. Oh, well. He got a break this time.

"Yeah," Emma responded, and Hook walked up to the bar next to her.

"Aye, and some rum for me." She scowled at him, as the bartender nodded, and set both drinks down in front of them. Killian paid for them both, and Emma's scowl deepened.

"Drinking rum and saying aye. You must be a pirate, and I don't associate with pirates." She started to leave, and Hook had to act fast.

"I'm not a pirate love." She turned around, wanting to see him talk his way out of this one. "I used to be one, though."

"Oh, really?" Most pirates would have gone for the 'my father was a pirate and I hated every second of it' spiel. The fact that he didn't intrigued her.

"Aye, I was, and I know why you don't like them. I've hurt a lot of people," he whispered, and looked at the ground, playing up the remorse card. "Then, someone, actually, a lot of someones, helped me realize that people are more important than money. Now, I try to help others, to the best of my ability, anyway."

"Well, in that case, I'm sorry I judged you so quickly," Emma said sincerely. Killian smiled inwardly. That had been close, but at least he'd been able to salvage the situation.

"That's alright, lass. I understand. If I were you, I would have done the same thing." Emma gestured for him to follow her, and they both brought their drinks to a table in the corner.

Emma decided to strike up the conversation. "So, what's your name then?"

"Killian. And I believe the bartender called you Emma?"

"That's right." She took a long sip of her drink. "So, Killian, what are you doing now that you've quit the pirate business?"

Now was the time to start the hints about disliking the Queen. "Well, it took me a while to decide what to do, but eventually, I figured I should help people, to atone for some of the things I've done. So, I came here, just got in today, actually, because I believed a lot of people would need help this close to the castle."

"Oh really, and why's that?" she asked.

"Well, no reason, just that peasants can be easily overlooked in such a big city." He'd spoken nervously and hastily, as if trying to hide his disdain for the Queen. Luckily, it worked.

"You know, I've got some ways you could help the peasants, if you're interested?"

"Really? Thank you so much, love. I thought I would have to waste time trying to find organizations to hook up with, and now you're just going to name a few for me. This must be my lucky day." She grinned, and he knew he had her right where he wanted her. Joining the resistance was going to be a piece of cake.


	5. Soup Kitchen

**Previously on Freeing Hearts**

**"Looks like even your house is a part of the resistance, Archie," Ruby whispered, before dashing off to work. After her shift at the diner, she'd come back and see if she could enter the house. But, at least she had an inkling of what she needed to do now.**

**Henry scowled. "Locking people up and torturing them until they spill all of their secrets isn't much better than killing them!" "But it is better," Cora said. "I'm starting to think people are wrong about you! Not only are you missing a heart, but there's poison where it should be!" Henry yelled, storming out on his grandmother for the second time in as many days.**

**Emma grinned, and Killian knew he had her right where he wanted her. Joining the resistance was going to be a piece of cake.**

* * *

><p>A soup kitchen. A bloody soup kitchen! That was Emma's idea of helping out the poor peasants on the streets of the city. So, Captain Killian Jones, the fiercest pirate ever to set sail, was reduced to handing out plates of food to orphans and widows. No wonder no one had ever managed to infiltrate the resistance before. It required humility, compassion, and pretty much every other emotion that the pirate absolutely lacked. Luckily, he was a good actor, because otherwise, he would have snapped by the fifth time one of the peasants scowled at him before taking their food. For the most part, they were grateful, but there were a few that were annoying enough to make him want to run them through. He was very proud to say he hadn't even yelled at one of them. When he needed to, Hook could be humble, especially with thoughts of eventual revenge swimming through his head.<p>

"You really do care about them," Emma commented, after they'd finally handed out food to everyone. She'd watched him closely, and he was always polite. He'd bend down to speak with a child, so they were eye to eye, and he'd even helped an old lady get up once she was done with her meal.

"Well of course, love. I don't just pretend to be reformed, you know." This was it, now that she thought he was compassionate, he was going to get into the resistance.

"See you here, same time tomorrow?" Killian was so going to kill that cricket.

"Of course love. And maybe, we could get here a little earlier? You know, to help set up?" She beamed at him as if he'd just asked her on a date.

"Great idea, Killian. I'll be too busy to, but if you can get here earlier, that would be wonderful. See you tomorrow." She walked off, and Hook headed toward the docks, trying to remain civil along the way. He'd have plenty of time to let out his pent up anger once aboard his ship.

…

Ruby looked around, making sure no one else was on the street, before slipping around to the back of Archie's house. She tried the back door, and, surprisingly, it was unlocked. She walked in, and instantly felt weird. This was the first time she'd ever entered someone's house without their permission, and it felt wrong, like she was breaking in. At least she knew Archie would greatly approve of the reasons she was commandeering his house.

She walked past his living room to get a good look at the kitchen. It had an unused feel in it, which made since, seeing as he came into the diner at least once a day. He probably didn't do much cooking. Other than that, though, it was perfect. It was bigger than she'd expected, and had everything she'd need to make bulk meals to serve to people who needed them. The soup kitchens couldn't catch everyone, and hopefully Ruby would be able to catch some of the people falling between the cracks.

She inspected the rest of the house. It had three bedrooms, all of which she could use as a makeshift hospital if necessary. Ruby wanted to meet as many needs as she could. Then, there was only the problem the house couldn't solve, money. So many people got thrown in prison for not being able to pay their taxes, and Ruby could only help so many of those on a waitress's salary.

"Breaking and entering? That's an all-time low for you." Ruby turned white, imagining all of the terrible things that happened to people in prison, as she turned around to face the speaker.

"Granny?" she asked, surprised her grandmother and boss had followed her here.

"What are you doing, breaking into a man's house?"

"Well, he's not going to use it anymore, since even if he is rescued, it would be too risky for him to return here. And I talked to a guard this morning, who said it would be abandoned for several months, so I thought I could use it."

"And what would you need an entire house for?" Granny asked, glaring at her.

Ruby had no idea what her grandmother would think of her plan, but she didn't have any other option but to tell her, since she couldn't think of a lie fast enough. She just hoped the older woman wouldn't turn her in. Maybe, she'd even let her implement the plan, so long as it didn't interfere with her work at the diner. "Well, I was going to use it to start a resistance. Nothing really bad, though! Just getting food to people, and possibly money. I also thought some of the rooms could function as a hospital, for those who really need it. I know it's kind of illegal, but I really just want to help people, and this was the best way I could think of to do it."

"We really need to work on you're lying skills." Ruby just stared, having no idea where her grandmother was going with this. "Next time, try acting drunk. That should get you off the hook."

"But Granny, you knew I wasn't drunk."

"Yes, but any guard who might follow you wouldn't know that. Anyway, we can work on lying later. How can I help?"

"Wait, you want to help me?" Ruby asked, shocked.

"Of course. It's a good plan, and I want to help people more than I've been able to." Ruby felt a grin start to spread across her face. She already had her first member!

"Okay, um, I could use a good cook."

"That I can do. How are we going to get the word out about this place, though?"

Ruby's face fell. "Honestly, I haven't thought that far yet."

"That's okay. We'll figure it out, together." The smile returned, and Ruby wondered why she hadn't thought to ask her grandmother in the first place. After all, Granny had always stood by her more selfless decisions, unlike Billy, who supported decisions that only benefited him. Maybe she'd been thinking about this all wrong; her resistance wasn't a chance for young people to play hero. It was a chance for those who just stood by and did nothing to help those hurt by the Queen to finally do something to stop injustice.

…

Henry finally found her, as she was walking away from one of the secret soup kitchens. It was illegal to provide a good or service without getting something in return, so all of the soup kitchens were secret. "Emma!" he called, running up to her. She meet him halfway, and hugged him. "Can't I just run away? Why do I have to put up with my evil grandmother?"

Emma felt her heart break as she let the young boy cry into her shirt. "What happened, Henry?"

"She said it was a shame Archie had to die, and that she'd much rather just have put him in prison. You know, where he would be tortured every day, and be forced to betray all of his friends. Because that's so much better than just killing someone! I hate her, and I hate having to be around her. Can't I just come live with you?"

"Kid, I would love nothing more than for you to be with me. But, you're needed in the castle. You're the best spy we have." Tears flowed from his eyes faster as he realized he was just going to have to put up with this. "I know this is tough, but any time you feel like giving up, just think about Archie. I mean, he wouldn't want you to blow your cover just because he died." Henry nodded, and buried his face in her shirt again.

"You know what? Let's have a day off," Emma suggested.

"But, we have to work. What about avenging Archie?"

"Well, kid, he'd want us to have fun, too. He wouldn't want us to work ourselves too hard on his account." Henry had to admit, Emma was right about that. "Have you ever played tag with a large group?" Emma questioned. She knew of a street where all the kids in a neighborhood gathered to play, and it was a lot of fun, whenever she had the time for it. She'd found it when she was ten, but she still joined in sometimes.

"What's tag?"

"Man, kid, what do they teach you in that castle?" Emma asked, shocked. She knew royalty tended to shelter their children, but this was just ridiculous. "That's it, we're playing tag today."

Henry followed his mentor, wondering what tag was, and if he would be able to enjoy it despite all the sorrow he was feeling.

…

The door to the room slammed open, which Archie took as a very bad sign. If his captor was in a bad mood, this encounter most likely wouldn't end well.

"Did you find her?" he asked, only then realizing he'd failed to describe what Emma looked like to the Captain.

"Yeah, mate I did. Then, I spend practically the whole day working in a bloody soup kitchen! I don't see what that has to do with resistance work in the first place!" The angry pirate slammed his fist into the wall, and Archie thought he was rather lucky it hadn't been his stomach that Hook had decided to take his anger out on.

"She'd just trying to judge your character," Archie explained.

"And how long does that take?" Archie hesitated, knowing his captor wasn't going to like the answer.

"Uh, it depends. Since she just meet you, it could take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months."

"You've got to be kidding me!" he roared. "I don't know that I can survive another day in that place, none the less a few months!"

"Well, the more hints you are able to drop, and the kinder you are, the faster it will go," Archie advised, hoping to stop Killian from becoming too angry.

"Whatever, cricket. Are you sure this is the fastest way to infiltrate the resistance?"

"The fastest way I can think of." By the sound of it, Hook was starting to calm down. Thank goodness; he really didn't feel like being tortured again.

"Well then, mate, as promised, you can keep the blanket. And now, so I can keep you alive …" The pirate shoved something into his hand, and he had to squint to realize it was a glass of water. He drank it greedily, not having any liquid since his capture. The water soothed his sore throat on the way down. As soon as it was gone, Hook grabbed the cup from him, and gave him something else; a small, slightly stale piece of bread. As Archie started to eat it, Killian left. He quickly finished the food.

"I'm grateful for bread, water, and avoiding torture," Archie whispered, pleasantly surprised to find his voice wasn't quite as hoarse. He'd decided to add to his grateful list whenever he had the opportunity. At least that way, he was thinking about being thankful more often, and he would be less likely to succumb to depression. He lay his head back against the wooden wall of the ship, trying to analyze the Captain again, now that he had more information.

Earlier, he'd decided that Hook was a cruel man who delighted in torturing others. Now, he wasn't quite as sure. After all, the captain had been livid, but hadn't tortured him. Either, Hook was a fair man who only tortured his prisoners when he perceived they deserved it, or he didn't enjoy hurting others as much as Archie had originally thought. Of course, having some sort of twisted honor code made the most since, but Archie couldn't help but wonder if Hook was really as evil as everyone thought he was.


	6. Tag

**Previously on Freeing Hearts:**

**"As I was saying, I think we need to try a more hands-on approach to catching the rebels. I've invited all of our noblemen to the castle, and together, we are going to crack down hard on the resistance."**

**Hook headed toward the docks, trying to remain civil along the way. He'd have plenty of time to let out his pent up anger once aboard his ship.**

**"Well, kid, he'd want us to have fun, too. He wouldn't want us to work ourselves too hard on his account." Henry had to admit, Emma was right about that. "Have you ever played tag with a large group?" Emma questioned. "What's tag?" "Man, kid, what do they teach you in that castle?" Emma asked, shocked. She knew royalty tended to shelter their children, but this was just ridiculous. "That's it, we're playing tag today."**

* * *

><p>Regina strode down the hall and straight into Gold's room, ignoring the servant girl walking by, although she knew rumors of her and Gold having an affair would soon crop up. It was worth it to talk to him, and besides, Regina seriously doubted that Milah would care if she actually walked in on Gold flirting with another woman. There wasn't really any love between the two of them.<p>

"Well hello, Regina. It seems like I can't be in the castle for five minutes before royalty comes to greet me." Regina slammed the door shut.

"Gold, we've got a problem."

"You mean, like people thinking we're having an affair?"

"No, I mean like Cora trying to catch us while rescuing prisoners. That's the main reason she called this meeting." He paused, sarcasm disappearing.

"Ah, I see. Well, at least we'll know what they're planning," he pointed out.

"True, but still. We're going to have to up our game if we want to avoid capture."

"You know what might help with that? A resistance member to bring the rescued prisoners to. Have you discovered if Henry is in the resistance?"

"No, he keeps running out of rooms before I can follow him. He is having a bit of trouble right now, though. This doesn't mean for sure that he is in the resistance." Gold nodded thoughtfully.

"Well then, dearie, you're just going to have to keep a better eye on him. The sooner we find someone in the resistance, the better off everyone will be."

"I know, I know," she muttered, feeling like he was lecturing. "Now I better go, before someone finds out." Not waiting for a response, Regina stormed out in much the same way as she'd entered the room. Now that Gold was warned, she could spend her energy on discovering where Henry ran off to. Hopefully, soon, they'd have a way to get people to the resistance.

…

Hook stormed out of the prison, still angry but not wanting to take it out on his prisoner. He didn't want the man to think that he would be punished for telling him the truth. If that were the case, he'd never get the cricket to chirp.

"Captain!" Smee called, running up to him, and Hook could have jumped for joy. Finally, someone he could torment! "Captain, where have you been? You've been missing all day."

"Where I've been is my business, Mr. Smee, not yours. And I do hate men who can't mind their own business." As he spoke, he sharpened his hook with the same stone he used to hone his sword. Mr. Smee quickly became pale.

"Ah, sorry Captain. It's just, the crew and I weren't sure what we were supposed to do."

"And what did you do, Mr. Smee?" he asked, threateningly.

The first mate gulped, no longer sure of the decision he'd made that morning. "We had a day of rest, Captain."

"A day of rest while I was working my hook off!" he bellowed. Smee cringed away from him. "And there's so much work to be done, too. The deck needs to be swabbed, the sail repaired, and the men's fighting skills could use a lot of work. Tomorrow morning, I expect the deck to be swabbed, and the men to be practicing. Just because I'm not here doesn't mean you get a bloody day of rest!"

"Yes, Captain," Smee agreed hastily. Hook stormed off and entered his cabin, slamming the door. Only then did he allow himself to laugh. Yelling at his first mate was so much fun, and he'd needed to get all those emotions off his chest. He'd known all it would take was yelling, and he didn't have to torture the cricket to find satisfaction.

He lay down on his bunk to sleep, happily drifting away; dreaming of treasure and ruthlessly murdering people - his best type of dreams.

…

Gold started to lay down as soon as Regina left. It had been a long trip, and he really needed to get some shut-eye if he was going to be sneaking back to his town every other night to rescue people from the prison there. Of course, someone else decided to interrupt his night. There was a knock on the door this time, at least. He was glad that there was at least one person in the world who understood that barging into someone's room was considered impolite.

"Come in," he said gruffly. To his shock, it wasn't a noble that dared to enter his room at such a late hour, but a servant girl.

"Sorry to disturb you, Mr. Gold, but last night you mentioned that the pain in your leg tends to keep you up." It wasn't just a servant girl, it was the servant girl. The one who actually treated him like a friend instead of an evil tyrant. He wasn't sure if he found that refreshing, or annoying. "So, I went to a doctor, and he recommended these. I know you probably already take them, but …"

"I will not take sleep medication. Do you know what happens when one can't wake up in the middle of the night?"

"No, but …"

"If you can't wake up, then when assassins come into your room to try and kill you, you have no way to defend yourself." _Or, if the Queen arrests you for being a traitor, you don't have time to escape._

"Okay, but Mr. Gold …"

"The only person I rely on for my personal safety is me, Miss French. I will not be taking sleep medicine, and if that is all you came here for, then you should leave immediately."

He rolled over, giving her a crystal clear sign that it was time for her to leave. "It's not sleep medicine." He rolled back to look at her, and she continued. "It's pain medication. I figured you already tried that, but I didn't remember seeing you take any, so…"

She put a bottle of medicine on the table and started to leave. Gold was taken aback that she would care enough about him to want to help him. "Thank you," he managed to say before she walked through the door. He meant it, no one had noticed that he didn't take pain medication before, and she not only noticed, but decided to do something about it. That was a truly sweet gesture.

"You're welcome, Mr. Gold." She didn't bother to remind him that it was her job to take care of him, instead she simply left him alone.

Gold pocketed the bottle of meds without taking any. While they might be useful, they wouldn't do much to help his perfectly healthy leg. Not that he would ever tell her, or anyone, that his leg was in perfect working order. After all, that would bring people one step closer to discovering his crimes.

He rolled over again, excited at the prospect of a full night's sleep, and drifted off. Soon, the only sound that filled his room was his gentle snoring, as, for the first time in weeks, Gold slept deeply and peacefully.

…

Henry laughed as a girl fell on top of him, after she finally succeeded in tagging him. "You're fast," she complimented, and he grinned.

"Thanks. You are too." Somehow, he didn't mind that she'd been targeting him the whole time. Other kids would get angry, but he just found it quite flattering that she thought he was tough enough to spend that much time on.

"You guys going to lay there forever, or are you going to come get us?" someone else taunted.

"We are so going to get you," the girl yelled, pulling Henry to his feet before rushing at a group of youngsters. Henry followed her, trying to catch some of them off guard, since they would have thought he would head in the opposite direction. "What's your name?" she suddenly asked.

"Henry."

"Okay, Henry, I'm Grace. I need you to head to the left, and I'll go to the right. Then, we can trap people in between us."

"Sounds like a plan, Grace." He started circling around, and sure enough, they soon had a large group of children caught between them. He wondered how, in the hours he'd been playing this game, he'd only learned her name just now. Wait, hours.

"Oh man, I'm going to be late!" he yelled, exasperated with himself. You think he would have noticed that the sun was setting, but in all the excitement, he'd forgotten. "Grace, I've got to go."

"Man! Well, see you later Henry. You will play again, right?"

"Yeah, if I can," he agreed, before running off. Emma soon caught up with him.

"Sorry, kid, I should have been keeping track of the time."

"No, I should have. It's not your fault. Man, I even missed dinner!"

"Well, did you enjoy our training, kid?" Emma asked, hoping he'd had fun even though he was about to get in trouble.

"Yeah, can we do it again sometime?"

Emma chuckled. "Sure. Besides, it hones some of your skills."

"You mean dodging, speed, and stamina?" Henry questioned.

"I was thinking of some more important ones, like social interaction and how to have fun even in tough times, but sure, those work too." Henry laughed, and Emma wished she could make him do that more often. She hated to admit it, but she was starting to think of him like … no! She wasn't going to admit it.

"See you later, Emma." Then, Henry was sneaking toward the castle, where his mentor couldn't follow.

"See you, kid." Soon, he was gone, and Emma trudged back toward her apartment. No, she didn't think of Henry, Prince Henry, as her son. She wasn't going to wonder if he could possibly be the little boy she'd given up for adoption ten years ago. No, Henry was just her apprentice, and the fact that she would do anything for him was purely because he was her friend, and not because she felt motherly toward him.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note: Hey guys. I just wanted to let you know how much reviews mean to me. I know you probably get this a lot, but unless your a writer, you can't really understand how much reviews mean. Even a short review, or one with constructive criticism, has the power to make my day. I'll only say this once, as I don't want to annoy you by begging for reviews, but I did want to let you know how wonderful they make me feel.<strong>


	7. High School

**Previously on Freeing Hearts**

**Ruby wondered why she hadn't thought to ask her grandmother in the first place. After all, Granny had always stood by her more selfless decisions, unlike Billy, who supported decisions that only benefited him. Maybe she'd been thinking about this all wrong; her resistance wasn't a chance for young people to play hero. It was a chance for those who just stood by and did nothing to help those hurt by the Queen to finally do something to stop injustice.**

**A soup kitchen. A bloody soup kitchen! That was Emma's idea of helping out the poor peasants on the streets of the city. So, Captain Killian Jones, the fiercest pirate ever to set sail, was reduced to handing out plates of food to orphans and widows.**

****"As I was saying, I think we need to try a more hands-on approach to catching the rebels. I've invited all of our noblemen to the castle, and together, we are going to crack down hard on the resistance."****

* * *

><p>Emma walked into the tent and stood at the back, waiting for her parents to finish talking to Robin. She fidgeted, slightly nervous. Her parents had told her they wanted to talk to her, but she didn't know why, and seeing them always made her nervous. She wasn't used to being with them; they had just always been so busy that spending time with their daughter was difficult. That was part of her reason for giving up her son for adoption, so he would have parents who had time to spend with him.<p>

"Emma!" Snow exclaimed as soon as Robin was leaving the tent. She rushed over and hugged the daughter she wished she could spend more time with. "It's so good to see you." Emma hugged her, and then she felt her father hugging both of them.

"We've missed you, sweetie," he said.

"I miss you too, Dad." Then, Emma pulled away from their embrace. "You guys needed to talk to me?" she reminded them.

"Oh, right. You were the closest to Archie, right? I mean, he even took over some of your training."

Emma tried to fight off the wave of grief that hit at the mention of his name. "Yeah."

"Ok. Now that he's … gone, we need someone to figure out how to rescue the prisoners." At least David had a little tact. "Seeing as you knew Archie, you might be able to figure out how he did it."

"Okay, sure," Emma agreed, wondering how on earth she was going to pull this off.

"Great! You don't have to worry about anything else, we can spread your duties out among other members of the resistance. You just focus on saving lives."

"Alright, got it," Emma agreed, and turned to leave.

"Emma, wait!" She turned around, to see the sorrow on her parent's faces. "We love you. You know that, right?" Snow asked.

"Of course. Love you too." Then, she left, trying to fight back tears. The fact that her parents loved her made her separation from them even harder. Oh, well, at least she still had Henry. She wasn't going to let anyone else take over his training, or Killian's. She didn't trust anyone else with either of them; Henry because he was a Prince and people would be biased against him, and Killian because he was a pirate and there was a slim possibility that he was lying about the reformed part.

She headed off to the soup kitchen to meet Killian, mind whirling on how to rescue the prisoners, and trying not to think about how much she wanted her parents to have more time for her.

…

Ruby placed down plates for a family of four, before going and taking the order of a couple who'd just walked in. It was a busy day in the restaurant, which reflected the busy thoughts in her head. How does she get word of her resistance to those who needed it, and only those who needed it? It seemed so easy in books, and in hearing about the deeds of the resistance, but when she thought about it, she realized just how hard it really was. It wasn't like she could put up a flier for it, after all.

"Hey Ruby," she jumped, a little startled, not realizing Billy had snuck up behind her.

"Hello," she said curtly, moving around him to give other patrons their dishes.

"Oh, come on. You're not still mad at me, are you?"

She stopped moving, and glared at him. "Yes, I am. You are a coward, Billy, and you only care about yourself. If you really wanted to join the resistance, you would support what I was doing." She spoke in a fierce whisper, so the customers wouldn't hear the topic of their discussion.

"Look, Ruby it's just too dangerous …"

"You know what else is dangerous? Living on the streets, with no job, no way to get food, and no money for taxes. That's dangerous, and the worst part is none of those people have a way to improve their lives."

"Come on, Ruby. I mean, I want to help them too, but I just don't think that it's worth such a huge risk."

That's when she blew. "Not worth the risk! It's always worth the risk, and I never should have forgotten that. People are more important than safety." That was about when she realized that the entire diner had heard her outburst. Somehow, she couldn't bring it in her to care. "You know what, Billy? We're through. I don't want to see you ever again."

She stormed into the kitchen and collapsed, tears starting to form on her face. The tearsy weren't from the breakup, she was all too happy with her decision there. They came from her memory of Peter, her very first boyfriend. He'd always give his spare change to the poor, saying he wanted to do anything he could to help them. It had become almost like a game between the two of them; seeing who could give the most money. But, one day, a guard caught Peter giving his money away, which was illegal. Money had to be exchanged for a good or service, and couldn't be given for nothing. They'd hauled him off to prison, where he'd eventually died. That's when she'd stopped giving to the poor, terrified she would succumb to the same fate. However, she could still recognize those they'd given money to, and she always felt a mixture of guilt and grief when she saw them…

That was it! She could tell them about her resistance! She could make up to them for ignoring them, and she could properly honor Peter's death.

"Ruby." Granny stood behind her, looking unsure of whether to lecture or comfort.

"Granny, I just thought of the perfect people to tell!"

"That's wonderful, but right now, you have a job you're neglecting."

"Oh, right. Sorry." She grinned sheepishly, dried her eyes, and continued her shift. The end of the day couldn't come soon enough, because once her job was over, her real work could begin.

…

"How did you lose your hand?" It was questions like these that made Killian wonder how anyone put up with children. His first response would be to say that a pirate took it when he was a lad for asking too many questions. However, with Emma right there, that certainly wasn't the right way to go about it. He could always tell the truth, but that would be too painful for both the lad and himself.

"A crocodile bit it off."

"A crocodile?" the lad asked, his eyes wide.

"Aye, a crocodile. He just snapped it right off." Then, he wondered if the kid was the squeamish sort, so he decided to make his story a little more light-hearted. "But he was really after the clock."

"Clock?"

"Aye, I was holding a clock at the time, and the crocodile was stupid enough to think it was a fish. So, it ate the clock. You know, you can still hear it ticking in the crocodile's stomach if the beast comes close to you."

"Really? That's so cool! I wish I could swallow a clock, and tick all the time." Killian chuckled, surprised to find he was genuinely amused by the youngster's reaction. Maybe this was why people put up with kids; they could be downright hilarious.

"August, why don't we go sit down now?" an older man who was with the boy suggested. August agreed, and led the way, but the man held back for a bit.

"I'm sorry about August. He's just curious," the man explained.

"Don't be, mate. I rather enjoyed talking to the lad." The older man nodded, and smiled apologetically before following the boy to a table to enjoy his free meal.

"So, did a crocodile really take your hand?" Emma asked, curious.

"No, love, but that's much better than the truth." She nodded, and continued passing out meals, not pressing him for details. "Although, I did hear a story of a crocodile who swallowed a clock. That part was true."

"Really? Killian, I'm not sure that I can believe you."

"Aye, it's true. He swallowed it five years ago and it's still ticking today. The creature's so fast that it can still catch its prey; by the time you hear the ticking, it's too late to escape." She looked at him for a second, trying to discern if he was telling the truth, and saw that he looked dead serious.

"Wow. I wonder how it could continue to work for five straight years without …"

Killian burst out laughing, and she glared at him. "Some people are so gullible! I can't believe you actually thought a crocodile devoured a clock! But, you know, I did hear about a swan who …"

"Save it, Killian. I'm not going to listen to any more of your lies." He chuckled, and continued to hand out food to the poor peasants. Perhaps helping out in a soup kitchen wasn't quite as bad as he'd first thought, although it definitely helped to start his morning off by yelling at his crew.

…

"Order, order!" Cora yelled, and all the nobles fell silent, knowing they could catch up with their friends later. "Now, as everyone knows, we are here to discuss plans to defeat the resistance. First order of business is to stop the Dark One and the mysterious figure who rescue people from the prisons. This will not only allow us to stop a steady growth of the resistance, but it will actually help us start to pick them off. So, does anyone have an idea on how to lay a trap for either or both of the prison infiltrators?"

"Well, for the one plaguing this castle, we could post guards in the hallways most often used for the rescue," said a noble who lived in the castle. "We should block off hallway 27 B, 39 A …"

He rattled off about ten other hallways, and it was only once he was done that Cora heard the scratching of a quill. She looked over, and saw her daughter was writing it down. "Honey, we have a scribe for that," she chided.

"Yes, mother, but I can protect it much better than a scribe could. Besides, I'd like to know which hallways not to summon guards from if I need assistance with something."

"Well, alright then, dear." She was about to address the plan, when she noticed Gold had a quill and parchment too. "Gold, are you taking notes as well?"

"Yes, I thought I could bring the plan back to the prison near me, so they would know what was going on," he explained, trying to ignore Regina's snort. Honestly, if she cracked up over every little lie he told, she would be caught very soon. And so would he.

"Alright," Cora said, deciding to just ignore the note takers. "Well, that sounds like a good plan. I shall implement it immediately."

"Excuse me, mother, but where are you getting the guards from?" Cora looked at her daughter, a little shocked by the question. "You know, for the official records," she said, gesturing toward the notes she was making. This time, it was Gold's turn to snort. That was an absolutely abysmal lie. Cora looked skeptically between the two of them, before answering.

"Well, I was going to take them off of wall F, and …" Regina and Gold scribbled furiously, making sure to get all the hallway names. "Now that that's fleshed out, why don't we move on to a plan for the Dark One?"

"Blocking off hallways should work just as well for him," someone suggested, but then they all became silent. No one knew that prison very well, save for one man.

"Any ideas on how to catch the Dark One, Mr. Gold?" At that, Regina literally burst out laughing, and Cora became too irritated to put up with this any longer.

"Look, we all know you two are having an affair, but this doesn't give either of you an excuse to act like complete morons at my meeting. Do you understand?" Regina choked on her laughter, and Gold smirked at Regina's reaction, but they both nodded. "Good, now Mr. Gold, how to we catch the Dark One?"

"Well, if we blocked off hallways Z, R, and L, he wouldn't be able to get to the important prisoners, and …" he continued, and tried to write down as much as he could while talking, causing Regina to smirk at him. Finally, his plan was done, and they all broke for lunch.

"Come on, let's go to your room," Gold said seductively, and Regina wanted to smack his arm. However, there was no point in trying to sneak off from the main group if they had such an easy way out. She let him led her off, but as soon as the door to her room was closed, she glared at him.

"Everyone already thinks we're together, and I didn't want to waste time," Gold explained, sitting down at her desk. "We need to compare notes."

"Fine, but if Milah ever slaps me across the face for 'stealing her man,' just know I'm blaming you." She pulled up another chair, so they were both sitting at the desk.

"At least I didn't visit you in your room late at night," he accused playfully, and this time she lightly punched him on the shoulder. He mocked at being offended, and Regina grinned, before they turned back to the matter at hand. Regina pulled maps out of a drawer, and they started to mark them with the locations of the guards, doing her list first.

"How many hallways does you castle have?" Gold asked in shock, staring at the sheer number of hallways. "I mean, A 500? Isn't that a bit much? What, was the castle first designed for three or four separate Kings that wanted to live close to each other?"

"No, but my family's tastes have always been over-the-top," Regina admitted. Gold scoffed at the understatement, but finished marking the hallways. They moved on to the map of his prison next. "Wait a second Gold, you said hallway B, not D," Regina reminded him.

"No, I said hallway D."

"That might have been what you meant to say, but in my notes, it's a B."

Gold felt his temper rise, but was able to reign it in. "You know what, I'll just avoid both hallways." Regina, who was marking one of the hallways for him, stopped suddenly.

"Wait, Gold, why is hallway K right next to hallway W? It's like a maze in this prison."

"Honestly? I have no idea why they designed it that way. I prefer to think of the hallways by the names I give them; it makes more sense."

"So, what did you name them?" Regina inquired out of curiosity.

"Well, hallway K is Kitten, and hallway W is Waffle." She started to giggle.

"Seriously Gold, Kitten and Waffle? What is hallway R, Rainbow?" He scowled and muttered something under his breath, and she laughed louder.

"I wanted to make it seem less depressing, alright?"

"Well, you certainly succeeded. And I must say this, Gold, at least you'll never forget which hallway is which." She laughed delightedly at his death glare.

"Alright, now my route," Gold said, trying to get them back on task so Regina couldn't comment on his unique naming system any longer.

"Right." It had been fairly simple to plan out a route for Regina, but now, looking at the map, Regina noticed a major problem. "Um, Gold? All the hallways are blocked off."

"That's why I'm going to use hallway Midnight."

"Gold, M is on the opposite side of the building from where you need to be."

"No, you're talking about hallway Muffin. I said Midnight. The secret tunnels have a more mysterious theme." Regina glared at him incredulously, so he grabbed the map from her and added in his secret hallways. "See, I'll enter through Darkness, where I always enter the building, and then I'll take Puppy to Midnight, and then I'm in Cuddles, where all the prisoners about to be executed are kept. See? It's easy."

"You know Gold, I think you should be the official namer of all hallways in the realm." She laughed as he sighed, irritated.

"People would think we were teenagers by the way you're acting," he accused.

"Maybe we are teenagers. I'm teasing the boy, you're coming up with some of the most interesting names for prison hallways I've ever heard, and we're both comparing notes so we can study our maps for our 'tests.' I'm pretty sure we are teenagers."

This time, Gold burst out laughing, and Regina followed suit. Then, they were interrupted by a knock on the door. Regina opened it, to find a guard standing there. "Sir, Your Highness, the meeting was supposed to resume a few minutes ago," he informed them, leaving quickly before facing their wrath.

Gold sprung to his feet and grabbed his cane, following her out of the room. "Definitely teenagers. We're even late to one of our classes on the first day of school." Their laughter echoed down the hallways as they headed to the meeting, both wondering when risking their lives to double-cross the Queen had become so much fun.


End file.
